How to keep thinking of fresh ideas as a journalist

When you're a writer, thinking of ideas is a key part of the job. What will people want to read? What will get the clicks online? What new angles are there on current news stories?

As a freelance journalist, editor and copywriter, I spend every waking second thinking of ideas. I jot them down on my phone as and when, with a note as to what magazine or newspaper they might be best for, and then I refer back to them when I am ready to send my pitching emails.

But thinking of new, fresh and exciting ideas isn't always easy. Since going freelance however, I have found new ways to drum up ideas...

1. Old ideas can get reused -There are only so many ideas you can think of based around Valentine’s day or Easter or that awful day, Blue Monday. So don’t be afraid to re use old ideas with a slightly new twist, new experts, new stats and new up-to-date studies.

2. Read, always - Magazines, journals, newspapers, social media posts and captions, leaflets...these are all fantastic for helping to summon up ideas. I screenshot everything I see that I think could lead to an idea. My phone is clogged full of screenshots but I do often look back at them for inspiration.

3. Ask your friends/family/partner - If your friendship group is anything like mine, they don’t stop talking. But these chats can offer a great insight into how other people think about different topics. Sometimes, I'll even use my friends or family as a sounding board to find out what they want to read and whether they'd be interested in any of the ideas I am working on.

4. Listen to podcasts on your area of expertise - Podcasts are golden. They can offer new insights into so many different topics and it's a good way to get different opinions as well as hear from some of the industry's best experts. I have health and fitness podcasts playing in my ears whenever I go for a run or a stroll and I am forever having to stop and jot down what's in my head.

5. Take a breather - Mind block? You’re only human. And humans can’t be ‘on’ 24.7. So leave the ideas and go and do something else...workout, watch TV, make a tea...anything to take you away from ideas for a while. I promise you, when you sit back down at your desk, you'll feel the inspiration return!

   
   

   6. Don't 'devote' time to ideas - For me, this never works. Ideas come to me when I am on the go, listening to a podcast, out on a walk, in the shower...you name it! If I sit down and devote half an hour to thinking of ideas, they never come!

7. Read press releases - As a journalist, tonnes of press releases land in my inbox everyday. Some aren’t relevant but if you read into some, you might find a hidden stat or a golden nugget of information which could trigger a whole article idea.

Just me. Sitting here. Writing down ideas.